Nature

Reiðhjalli is situated in Syðridalur in Bolungarvík. from the end of the road in the bottom of the valley there is a slightly worse road that climbs up the hill from the Hydro-powerplant. If the road is hiked it leads you to the Reiðhjalli reservoir. The view from the area is stunning. As an addition to the hike you can take a sneak peak off the cliffs down to Súgandafjörður or even hike down Hnífsdalur valley.

History and Culture

The museum consists of a replica of a 19th century double fishing booth, salt-shed, fish drying platform and a fish drying shed. It also has on display the fishing boat Ölver that represents the type of boats that were used for fishing at earlier times. The museum gives a realistic picture of the accommodation offered to fishermen of the 19th century, during the harsh winter fishing seasons. Dressed in the traditional protective clothing, made of skin, the curator guides visitors around the museum, offering a unique glimpse of a long gone past. The museum is located beside the road into Bolungarvík on the east side of the bay.

Nature

Skálavík is the next creek westwards from Bolungarvík. People lived in Skálavík until around 1960's and since then the creek has been uninhabited. People from the area and people who have relations to Skálavík have restored some of the houses and new summerhouses have been built. In a good summer day the people from the area like to build sandcastles on the beach, take a walk and even swim in the river. Skálavík is a paradise for kids and a perfect place to stop the car and play around. On the way from Skálavík, we recommend driving all the way up to the top of the moutain and take a look at the view from the top.

Nature

In the year 1975 was put up a memorial stone for Þuríður Sundayllir, the first known settler of Boungarvík. The stone, which is called Þuríðarsteinn or the stone of Þuríður is situated in Vatnsnes where people think Þuríður's settlement was in the beginning.

Nature

Skarfasker is a viewing point on the way to Óshlíð. It's nice to stop the car at Skarfasker and take a look at the viewing point and sit down for coffee. After a quick coffee stop it's perfect to walk onwards to Óshlíð.

Nature

The most popular visiting point in Bolungarvík is the top of Bolafjall Mountain. The place offers a staggering view over Ísafjarðardjúp, Jökulfirðir and some people say all the way to Greenland. To get to Bolafjall mountain you have to drive up the road from Bolungarvík the way to the radar station on the top. The station was built by the Americans but is now controlled by the Icelandic coast guard. The route is open from the middle of june until august september. After a visit to Bolafjall, or even before, We recommend a coffee break and a nice walk at the black sand beach in Skálavík.

The road up to the mountain is open when situations in the mountain allow it to be. Usually that is from middle of june until the middle of september.

Nature

Syðridalur in Bolungarvík is known for an old lignite mine which is situated in the valley. Lignite was mined from the mine in the years of 1917 until 1921 or while and after the first World War. The reason why the mining was shut down is because coal from Europe became more accessible after the war. Lignite in Iceland is worse than coal due to the fact that volcanic ash is one of the main contents. Lignite in Iceland only includes 60% carbon but European coal includes 70-80% carbon. The mine in Syðridalur actually consist of two mines, one on either side of the river. Gilsnáma is the one that's more known but Hanhólsnáma is the lesser known mine. Gilsnáma is more than 100 meters long but the other is around 10 meters. Inside Gilsnáma you can see some of the equipment that was used to mine, including a few hammers and a scale. To get into Gilsnáma you almost have to crawl, but once you're in the ceiling gets higher and you can stand upright. The walk up to the mine takes around 20-25 minutes on a marked trail and it's well worth the stop.

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Safe travel in Iceland

To make travel in Iceland safer - for your safe returnSafetravel.is is run by ICE-SAR and is part of a bigger project, simply named Safetravel. In that project a number of companies, public institutions and individuals join hands and the goal is to lower the rate of accidents in travel and tourism in Iceland.

The 112 Iceland app can be used for two things, both for added safety on your Iceland trip. First of all you can call for help by pressing the red Emergency button. Your location will be sent by text message to the 112 response center. Remember that even though your phone shows no signal there is a possibility that you can send text message.

The green Check In button is for you to leave your location with us so if something happens we have more information to work with. Only the 5 last locations are stored and we recommend you use this – don’t worry – you are not disturbing anyone – except for our big computer who wants to be disturbed.

On Safetravel.is you can find extensive amount of information which can help you plan your travel to and around Iceland in more safe and secure way.

Local time and weather

Aurora forecast

When to see the Northern Lights in Iceland? The best time is between 21:00-03:00 although they can often be seen early evening or during the night. The official Northern Lights season in Iceland is from October till March. The more activity the more likely it is that you will see the northern lights but that is not all. There is never a guarantee of spotting the northern lights, but northern lights forecast by vedur.is are good. Clear skies are necessary, when we have clear skies in Iceland It is usually cold. So be sure to wear the right clothing.Northern Lights Forecast The Icelandic Met Office does Northern Lights Forecast which is good to use. Visit the Icelandic Met Office www.vedur.is, for more info.

Driving in Iceland

Always check the road conditionsThe weather is not the same in different regions of Iceland. Here below are good websites to use when traveling in Iceland in winter. Vedur.is is the official website for weather in Iceland. But it doesn’t always give the right picture road.is, the website for the Icelandic Road Administration, is the best website to use if you use it right.If you are unsure then you can call 1777 and ask for the conditions (open 06:30-22:00) or 1778 an automatic telephone service open all day.

Driving in Iceland can be tricky - but if you listen carefully to Elfis you should be fine.